The Shawano School District will continue to enlist the public relations help from Dorreen Dembski Communication Services for a second year and plans to lean in especially heavy as it prepares to ask voters a second time to approve a capital referendum.
The Shawano School Board voted 6-1 on July 8 to continue the partnership between the district and the Fond du Lac-based company. Board member Frank Kugel voted against the deal, while board members Al Pyatskowit and Christine McKinnies were absent.
Dembski’s proposal suggested utilizing her to lead the charge in marketing for the November referendum, curating information to be published on the district’s website, providing social media support about information regarding the referendum, assisting with contents for three videos, creating and sending out press releases and mailings, developing signs to be placed in the community and developing presentations for community and staff meetings.
Outside of the referendum work, Dembski plans to help develop the district’s key messages about what it wants people to know and understand about Shawano’s public schools. The scope of work also includes writing up to eight press releases to go out to local media, developing three newsletters to be mailed out to district residents, creating social media content and consulting on emergency and crisis communications, among other things.
Superintendent Kurt Krizan reported that Dembski invoiced for 271 hours in the 2023-24 school year, but he noted her services were especially needed in the spring as she worked with Hoffman Planning and Design in the aftermath of the failed April referendum.
Krizan noted that some of the items proposed were originally to be completed in the previous school year but were pushed back when other priorities arose.
“I think the three newsletters turned out really, really well,” Krizan said. “They took our existing things and tweaked them a little bit.”
Dembski would be paid $145 per hour, and the number of hours available to the district is 386 hours for an estimated total of $56,000. However, that estimate does not include travel costs, the cost of printing, postage, video production and other production costs, according to written information Dembski provided. Dembski was not at the meeting to speak to the board.
Kugel questioned why Dembski was limiting the number of press releases to go out, suggesting that more information would be preferable to less.
“Being a newspaper kind of a person, I’m looking at things like, I need an information sheet in the printed press about, let’s say, synthetic turf vs. grass, or tech ed facility expansion, or performing arts, etc.” Kugel said. “I’ve come up with nine things already, so when it says up to eight press releases, and I’ve got nine things I’d love to see so people who like to read the newspaper and make a decision, how bound are we to this outline?”
Krizan noted that the district has been looking at hiring an in-house marketer, and he said Dembski believes the district needs another year of her foundational work to make that happen.
lpulaski@newmedia-wi.com
Dembski PR firm gets 2nd year with Shawano schools
